John Breech of CBS Sports has a record of 145 wins and 96 losses in picking games this year. In Week 17, he likes one upset. Let’s take a look at the one underdog he likes, and two favourites in competitive matchups.
Cincinnati Bengals (+6.5) @ Kansas City Chiefs (O/U: 44.5)
In this battle, we have the AFC West Division leading Kansas City Chiefs (9-6) facing the 8-7 Cincinnati Bengals. The Bengals are tied for third in the AFC North with Pittsburgh, and for seventh place in the conference with the Indianapolis Colts and Houston Texans.
Breech likes the Bengals here by a score of 23-20. He believes the Chiefs are “starting to implode.” Kansas City has lost three of their last four games, as they were beaten 27-19 by the Green Bay Packers on December 3, 20-17 by the Buffalo Bills on December 10, and then 20-14 to the Las Vegas Raiders on Christmas Day. One major issue this season has been dropped passes by receivers. Kansas City leads the NFL with 39. Breech has also not been impressed lately with Travis Kelce, the offensive line and the running game. He feels Bengals quarterback Jake Browning does not need to be great to beat the Chiefs, just not make any huge mistakes.
Las Vegas Raiders (+3) @ Indianapolis Colts (O/U: 43.5)
The Raiders (7-8) enter this game with still a chance to win the AFC West, and face a Colts team that holds down the final playoff spot in the AFC at 8-7. There are numerous reasons why Breech should like the Colts here. They include the facts that the Raiders have had the shorter week (just played Christmas Day), their offense was out of sync against the Chiefs (did not complete a pass after the first quarter), and Indianapolis’s offense, led by running back Jonathan Taylor, is significantly stronger. The Colts have scored 354 points this season, compared to 285 for the Raiders. Breech likes the Colts 22-19.
Green Bay Packers (+2) @ Minnesota Vikings (O/U: 44.5)
The Vikings’s are Breech’s pick here by a score of 27-24. Both teams have identical records of seven wins and eight losses, and are trying to make the playoffs in the National Football Conference. The Vikings are the more rested team as they last played in Cincinnati last Saturday, while the Packers played Sunday in Carolina, and are playing their second straight road game. Green Bay lost their two previous road games this season when they were playing their second game of a two-game road trip. Green Bay was beaten 25-24 by Atlanta on September 17, and then 19-17 by Denver on October 22.
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